Initiating Partnerships
6 - 20 Apr 2027
3 days
Master the skills to identify, initiate, and design strategic partnerships, aligning them with your institution’s goals while effectively communicating your value proposition.
Did you know? Participating in this course will earn you 1.5 Continuing Education Units and a UIIN Badge!
This training course is freely accessible for our Accelerator & Changemaker members
Sorry to bother you..
We just wanted to make sure that before you register and pay, you are aware that this and many other learning opportunities are included and/or discounted in a UIIN community membership :)
Benefits of joining UIIN
- Networking
Expand your network in the online community and at our many events. - Learning
Develop your professional skills with our seminars, masterclasses and training courses. - Actionable insights
Discover our case studies, reports, podcasts & more. - Tailored & strategic guidance
Join roundtable discussions, get tailored strategy sessions and receive a diagnostic report.
Who should attend
Perfect for professional staff responsible for developing and managing partnerships or external engagement activities, whether within departments, faculties, or at the institutional level. If you are looking to build or strengthen strategic partnerships that drive value, this is for you.
Learning outcomes
This course will help you to
- Acquire the essential skills to identify, initiate and pursue partnership opportunities using systematic approaches
- Understand the processes involved in identifying and evaluating potential partners
- Design your own partnership approach aligned with your institution’s goals
- Learn to communicate your value proposition to potential partners effectively
- Develop an action plan for pursuing a mutually beneficial partnership opportunity
- Know what to seek in an external partner to inform your decision-making
- Expand your personal and professional network
Course elements
Week 1
6 Apr
Introduction to the course
Onboarding
Crafting your Partnership Approach | Workshop
Understand the importance of aligning goals to identify collaboration activities and address challenges, benefits and success factors of partnerships. Work on effectively communicating your value proposition and developing an action plan for pursuing a mutually beneficial partnership opportunity.
Week 2
13 Apr
Identifying and Evaluating Partners | Workshop
Identify the key competencies and sectors in your region or ecosystem. Apply a systematic approach to (i) identify potential opportunities and partners along with their key characteristics and (ii) evaluate and prioritise the opportunities to pursue.
Initiating Collaboration | Practice Exchange
In this interactive session, participants will compare how they qualify potential partners and how they approach new relationships—from first signals of fit to securing a meaningful first meeting.
Week 3
20 Apr
Partnership Approach Maturity Assessment | Knowledge-to-Practice
Undertake a self assessment of where you think you and your unit/institution sit when it comes to proactive approaches towards partnerships, and exchange insights with peers.
Closing
Wrap-up
Facilitators & Experts
Sarah is a Director at UIIN and an experienced consultant. She advises universities globally about university – industry engagement, strategic partnerships and institutional strategy. At UIIN, Sarah leads the advisory and business development practice, designing and delivering innovative solutions to enhance universities’ external engagement.
Todd has consulted to the European, Australian, and Vietnamese Governments, and to multiple universities. Todd is an Associate Professor of Entrepreneurship at the IMT Business School in Paris and a visiting researcher at Imperial College (UK), Technical University of Vienna (AUT) and the University of Adelaide (AUST) in the topics of entrepreneurship and innovation.
Arno Meerman is the founder and CEO of UIIN. He has expanded UIIN into one of the world’s leading organisations in the field of university-industry engagement and works with UIIN’s global community to train and advise university leaders and professional staff to become more innovative.
“This course has been fantastic in providing the foundational knowledge I need to grow in my career.”
"UIIN's thought leadership and strategic partnership programs have impacted my team's strategy and design of critical initiatives while opening doors to new partners and peer networks around the world."
Questions? Book a one-on-one with us.
Dr. Balzhan Orazbayeva, Manager Strategic Initiatives
Explore other courses
Building Effective University-Business Collaboration
Master the essentials of university-business collaboration and drive impactful engagement that fosters innovation and real-world impact.
Developing Strategic Partnerships
Elevate your partnership activities from mere transactions to impactful, long-term collaborations that drive innovation and create lasting value.
Building Start-ups at Universities
Create a thriving student start-up community, foster innovation, and build a successful university incubator or entrepreneurship centre that drives impactful ventures.
Create your free account
Reset your password
Enter your email address and we'll send you a link to reset your password.
Back to login